Sen. Kyrsten Sinema
Senator for Arizona
pronounced KEER-stun // SEH-nuh-muh
Sinema is the senior senator from Arizona and is an Independent caucusing with the Democrats (2022-), previously a Democrat (2019-2022). She has served since Jan 3, 2019. Sinema is next up for reelection in 2024 and serves until Jan 3, 2025. She is 47 years old.
She was previously the representative for Arizona’s 9th congressional district as a Democrat from 2013 to 2018.
![Photo of Sen. Kyrsten Sinema [I-AZ]](/static/legislator-photos/412509-200px.jpeg)
Analysis
Legislative Metrics
Read our 2022 Report Card for Sinema.
Ideology–Leadership Chart
Sinema is shown as a purple triangle ▲ in our ideology-leadership chart below. Each dot is a member of the Senate positioned according to our ideology score (left to right) and our leadership score (leaders are toward the top).
The chart is based on the bills Sinema has sponsored and cosponsored from Jan 3, 2019 to Apr 17, 2024. See full analysis methodology.
Committee Membership
Kyrsten Sinema sits on the following committees:
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Senate Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation
- Space and Science subcommittee Chair
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Senate Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs
- Government Operations and Border Management subcommittee Chair
Emerging Threats and Spending Oversight subcommittees -
Senate Committee on Appropriations
Agriculture, Rural Development, Food and Drug Administration, and Related Agencies, Energy and Water Development, Interior, Environment, and Related Agencies, Military Construction, Veterans Affairs, and Related Agencies, Transportation, Housing and Urban Development, and Related Agencies subcommittees
- Senate Committee on Veterans' Affairs
Enacted Legislation
Sinema was the primary sponsor of 15 bills that were enacted. The most recent include:
- S. 4104 (117th): Hualapai Tribe Water Rights Settlement Act of 2022
- S. 2852 (117th): Long-Term Care Veterans Choice Act
- S. 3204 (117th): Old Pascua Community Land Acquisition Act
- S. 2541 (117th): Shadow Wolves Enhancement Act
- S. 2580 (117th): Alexander Lofgren Veterans in Parks (VIP) Act
- S. 2558 (116th): Nursing Home Care for Native American Veterans Act
- S. 4224 (116th): Southwest Border Security Technology Improvement Act of 2020
Does 15 not sound like a lot? Very few bills are ever enacted — most legislators sponsor only a handful that are signed into law. But there are other legislative activities that we don’t track that are also important, including offering amendments, committee work and oversight of the other branches, and constituent services.
We consider a bill enacted if one of the following is true: a) it is enacted itself, b) it has a companion bill in the other chamber (as identified by Congress) which was enacted, or c) if at least about half of its provisions were incorporated into bills that were enacted (as determined by an automated text analysis, applicable beginning with bills in the 110th Congress).
Bills Sponsored
Issue Areas
Sinema sponsors bills primarily in these issue areas:
Armed Forces and National Security (27%) Government Operations and Politics (24%) Public Lands and Natural Resources (10%) Environmental Protection (10%) Finance and Financial Sector (8%) Native Americans (8%) Immigration (7%) Health (6%)
Recently Introduced Bills
Sinema recently introduced the following legislation:
- S. 4016: A bill to amend the Boulder Canyon Project Act to authorize the Secretary …
- S. 3885: A bill to expand medical, employment, and other benefits for individuals serving as …
- S.Res. 499: A resolution acknowledging the lifetime of service of Sandra Day O’Connor to the …
- S. 3458: Seniors’ Access to Critical Medications Act of 2023
- S. 3029: Honoring Civil Servants Killed in the Line of Duty Act
- S. 3021: A bill to amend title XVIII of the Social Security Act to permanently …
- S. 2877: A bill to establish a matched savings program for low-income students.
View All » | View Cosponsors »
Most legislation has no activity after being introduced.
Voting Record
Key Votes
Missed Votes
From Jan 2019 to Apr 2024, Sinema missed 106 of 2,159 roll call votes, which is 4.9%. This is worse than the median of 2.9% among the lifetime records of senators currently serving. The chart below reports missed votes over time.
We don’t track why legislators miss votes, but it’s often due to medical absenses, major life events, and running for higher office.
Primary Sources
The information on this page is originally sourced from a variety of materials, including:
- unitedstates/congress-legislators, a community project gathering congressional information
- The House and Senate websites, for committee membership and voting records
- GPO Member Guide for the photo
- GovInfo.gov, for sponsored bills
